New solar tech sees 15% more efficiency

Posted January 16, 2011 - 13:15
by
Susan DeFreitas, EarthTechling

Smart homes and smart buildings rely on a host of wireless sensors, each of which require a small but consistent power supply.

Devices that harvest energy from indoor light are an increasingly popular power partner for such sensors–and recently, SolarPrint announced the launch of a new tech designed to make these low-power devices more effective.

Ireland's own SolarPrint is a a leading photovoltaic energy technology developer, and its vision for powering the next-generation of wireless sensors is a dye-sensitised solar cell (DSSC) technology hat mimics the process of photosynthesis.

This technology - which is tuned to harness ambient or diffused light regardless of the incident angle - is said to enhance the ability of today's energy-harvesting solar cells to produce juice from such low-power, indoor sources by 15%.

According to the company, this new technology surpasses the current industry ceiling for energy-harvesting devices.

"Our technology takes energy harvesting to the next level, converting even the lowest levels of light in an indoor space into energy," said Dr. Mazhar Bari, CEO and co-founder of SolarPrint, in a statement.

"Our solution will propel energy technologies further than ever, with the potential to profoundly save on energy costs."